Making A Wise Decision...

Matthew 1:18-23 (NKJV):

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.

19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.

20 But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.

21 And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.”

22 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying:

23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,”[a] which is translated, “God with us.”

In continuance with my last blog entitled "The Author and Finisher of Your Faith", the Lord took some time this morning to expound upon the situations in which faith effect our lives, and our decision making, whether it be to follow man's wisdom or God's wisdom in life. Out of this scripture, God pointed out some very clear points to me:

1.) Joseph, in his own understanding of the situation with Mary's pregnancy before their marriage, sought the counsel of MAN, and was going to put away Mary secretly. But the counself of GOD entered into the situation through the angel Gabriel, and Joseph was told to not be afraid to marry her, for the child within her was conceived of the Holy Spirit and would be the Christ (the Savior of the world). He even gave Joseph the name "Jesus" for the baby which is translated "God with us."

2.) At this very point in the story, Joseph has a major decision to make...whose wisdom does he follow? Does he believe this angel of the Lord who tells him to take Mary as his wife and not put her away, even though men will not understand his reasoning and purposes (and FAITH)? OR--does he believe the angel of the Lord (and God's divine counsel) and take Mary as his wife and not be ashamed to be with her because he believes this child was conceived by the Holy Spirit and is the Son of God?

I don't know what you think, but there was definitely a lot riding on this decision to trust in either man's wisdom or God's wisdom. The interesting thing about this passage which relates to our lives today is that many times, God will reveal information about our current situation through the voice of prophecy, the church, the body of Christ, our circumstances, and prayer...and we find ourselves in the same place as Joseph did. Often times, when faced with a major decision, we seek the counsel of man. Although it is wise to seek the counsel of other Godly people, ultimately the decision to believe God lies only with each one of us. It is an individual place where we stand before God with all the information and confirmation we have received and must make this same decision....man's wisdom or God's wisdom?

This can be especially hard when the circumstance involves a great deal of change, possible ridicule, and even shame being brought upon yourself or your family. God never led us to believe that following Him was without serious cost to ourselves. Often times, He will bring us to this place of decision, "the river", where we choose to cross over from wandering in the spiritual wilderness (as Israel did for 40 years) or believing God despite the report of man (Numbers 14), and crossing over the Jordan River into the Promised Land. God will only bring you to edge of the river, but He will not make that decision of faith for you! It is up to you to decide what, and WHOM, you will believe.

Jeff and I came to the edge of the river when we chose, by the Lord's counsel, to leave the military life and move to Colorado. Jeff did not have a job, and we knew there would be enemies in the land where God was taking us. We knew ahead of time that the battles would be great and fiersome, but we also knew that the reward for obedience is GREAT. We may not see the full reward as of today, so every day, we must choose to continue to seek the Lord's counsel and His wisdom, and follow Him at any cost. There are many we know who have chosen to stay on the wilderness side of the river, and as can be seen in Numbers 14, there are consequences for choosing to believe the report of man over God's report! This can be seen in the example found in:

Luke 1:10-20 (NKJV):

10 And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense.

11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.

14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.

15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.

16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.

17 He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’[a] and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

18 And Zacharias said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.”

19 And the angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings.

20 But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.”

This is another example of a man seeking God, who God brought to the place of decision. Was he going to trust his own wisdom, or the wisdom of man, which told him he was too advanced in age to bear children? OR--did he believe the angel of the Lord who came to tell him that he and Elizabeth would bear a son in old age? This is once again a question of FAITH. In contrast to what we saw with Joseph, Zachariah questioned the wisdom of God and the angel Gabriel who brought good news, and as a consequence...he was made mute until the day of his son's birth!

Ultimately, God's plans still would have prevailed in both situations, but one chose to be a cooperative and faithfilled part of the process, while the other questioned the power and wisdom of God, and received consequences for it. John the Baptist was still born of Zachariah and Elizabeth, and became the man God intended for him to be, but Zachariah was disciplined for his unbelief.

So, today, I ask you...has the Lord brought you to the valley of decision? Has He placed you at the edge of the Jordan River and is just waiting for your answer to obey Him, or not. Are you putting your trust in the wisdom of man, or the wisdom of God? Should you choose God above man, you can be sure that persecution and battles will follow, but ultimately...this decision brings you into the Promised Land that God has intended for you since before the foundation of the world. There is a LOT hanging in the balance of your decisions to have FAITH in God.

Make your choice wisely today....

May God bless you with faith from the hearing of His Word, and open your hearts and minds to the truth within. May you follow Him wholeheartedly and without regress so that you might one day find yourself in God's Promised Land. I pray in Jesus' name, Amen.

Thankful for God's wisdom,

Sarah

The Author and Finisher of Faith

Do you ever realize that life is a journey, and it is always headed somewhere? I recently was told by a man I know that sometimes, it is like we are on a dark and winding road at night, and we have a look of uncertainty as to where we are going. This is equally true in the Christian life, when a person is walking with God. Sometimes, we don't know what path we are on, what step comes next, or even where it will lead us eventually. One thing we CAN know for sure is that Christ is the "author and finisher of our faith." It is His path that we are on, and ultimately, He knows the way to living victoriously, even when we cannot see two feet in front of us!

Hebrews 12:1-3 (NKJV): "Therefore, we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

There are a couple of things about this scripture that stand out to me, first that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. We have people all around us who will encourage us to believe in Christ and His continuing work, as we are constantly given testimony by other believers of what He has done in their lives. We are able to view and hear about the other paths that Christians are walking with God and be encouraged that God is always with His children, and is not leaving them to ruin or destruction. Second of all, the word endurance stounds out as it is spoken of as something we need to run the race (the path of life) set before US, but also that Christ already demonstrated that this can be done by "enduring" the cross. He endured His own life path all the way to the end of suffering on a cross. He is setting an example for those of us who would like to follow Him in His own footsteps, and become Christ-like.

The word "patience" (or endurance) that is being spoken of in this verse is from the Greek word "hypomone" which means "steadfastness, constancy, endurance" and in the New Testament, it characterizes a person who is not swerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even the greatest trials and suffering."

The scripture also says "despising the shame." Have you ever felt persecuted, or felt as though others around you were trying to put you to shame for what you believe about Christ, His power and His resurrection? I certainly have. I have endured shame from others because I was bold enough to proclaim that Jesus was alive and that I walk daily with Him. I have made proclamations of things that Christ has told me in the secret place of prayer with Him, shouting from the rooftops what I have heard in secret, and I have endured ridicule and shame....as all His prophets did before me. Christ, himself, was a prophet of God proclaiming God's Word, and His promises, and His plan for the redemption of mankind. Yet, Christ was (and still is) ridiculed to this day, and there are many who love to put His holy name to shame over the things He proclaimed as truth. The more we speak of the truth of God, the more we can expect to endure the same suffering and shame as Christ. But, there is redemption in the last line of the scripture. You see, Christ was exalted to the right hand of the throne of God, the place of greatest honor in the kingdom of God. We, too, after suffering, will be seated in the heavenly places with Christ and we have become co-heirs in His inheritance. We will be exalted as well.

I have been pondering this idea of being in shame by the world's standards for believing in Christ, His plan and His purposes for my life. I have endured ridicule, mocking, and utter disbelief, even from my own brothers and sisters in Christ. Why do I continue to run the race set before me (by Christ) with endurance? Because as I suffer with Him, I will also be exalted with Him in the heavenly places.

Romans 8:16-18 (NKJV): "The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs--heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. For I consider the sufferings of the present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."

I exhort you and encourage you to consider whether or not your suffering is for the kingdom of God, or you are just suffering in vain. This is all determined by whether the Spirit of God bears witness with your spirit as to whether you are a child of God. If you are suffering currently and are a child of God, I encourage you to run the race set before you with endurance! You will be exalted in that final day with Christ, and you will receive the inheritance that was given to you by the Father God in heaven. Just remain on that course that you are set upon, and remember that Christ is the one who is the author and FINISHER of your faith! May God bless you and keep you through any trial and suffering, and comfort you with the knowledge of your own exaltation alongside Christ. In Jesus name, I pray that God would open your hearts, minds, ears and eyes to see the truth of His Word, and the glory contained within.

In His glorious grace,

Sarah